joelaiken

Totally agree! Joel

At my home course, Pine Valley CC (Wilmington, NC) Played 9 holes ... the easier of the two nines. started out 1-over after 3, then faltered and finished a disappointing 8-over 44. I'm returning to golf after a 15 year period of very little golf, trying to get back to my "old game"

Shot 86 today. Decided to play the white tees, and it made a big difference in my ability to get within range of the longer par 4's but didn't make much difference in my score, but mainly because my short game was not as sharp today. Our club has extremely difficult greens. VERY fast and very sloped, making downhill puts (or chips) harder than any other ourse I've ever played. There are some greens where you might be (from 25 ft or so) putting level to a point where a downslope begins, and even if you putt (slow enough) to the point where it barely begins down the slope, it will roll past the hole 15 feet or more, possibly even off the green. If you had putted any softer, the ball would never get the point where it could start down the slope, leaving you 20 ft short. In other words, it's impossible to get te ball close (unless you knock it in by some miracle) Our course has about 10 or 12 greens like this. The locals know to NEVER hit to those impossible points... sometimes you're actually better off to hit an approach shot to the green to land short of the green to prevent hitting to the higher parts of the green. The greens are very much like Pinehurst #2... mounds which feed the ball off the green... on all sides of the green. It's like trying to land a ball on top of a Volkswagen bug. so, that was today.

My goal is to play smart. Don't try to hit shots that are risky. I'm reading a book now called: "How Short Hitting Bad Golfers Break 90 All the Time" written by Fred Fields. I had never heard of the author or his book, but so far I am loving what he has to say. Learn how to be great from 100 yards in, and at chipping and putting... Be skilled at the short game. Joel

Played 9 holes... 4 GIRs 1 birdie shot 42. rained us out after 9. walked with my new ClicGear push cart. Played my home course Pine Valley CC in Wilmington, NC

Too bad I just bought Callaway RAZR X driver, 3 and 5 woods. These Pings look fabulous. It's amazing how good the new clubs look. My irons are an older set of Mizunos, probably 12-15 years old. I'm wondering if the technology in club manufacture has advanced appreciably in that past 15 years, making the purchase of newer clubs a smart thing?

Does that huge "sole" on the irons help an older player with a slower swing speed? Joel

Wow, I did not know about Chambers Bay. A quick Google revealed it is the 2015 US Open site. I'm now very anxious to see it up close and personal. Joel

Aiken Municipal in Aiken, SC another Donald Ross design which is a pleasure to play. People from the North would stay in Aiken when visiting the Masters in the early years, and Aiken became a very quaint getaway for golfers and horse-lovers. We stayed at the Wilcox Inn which was a total delight and commuted to the Masters about 15 miles away.

Wilmington Municipal in Wilmington, NC is a nice old Donald Ross course. Well kept up and challenging. A pleasure to play. No practice range. very inexpensive.

Thanks. As a new member, I was wondering. Now I know. Joel

I'm hoping to get out the Seattle Area in the spiring of 2013. Will definitely visit this course. I was stationed briefly in Bremerton, WA many years ago in the Navy, but did not play golf there. Joel

Does not get any more beautiful. I had the pleasure of living on the Monterey Peninsula for 2.5 years and thought Pacific Grove was a little slice of heaven Joel

Thanks. That removes the confusion. Joel